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Red Hot: Hybrids are the rage in the Golden State

October 3, 2006

The Toyota Prius is the poster child for hybrids and one of the few allowed in the HOV lanes in California.

Where would the hybrid vehicle market be if it weren't for California?

Hybrids are still hot stuff - registrations rose 34.8 percent in the first seven months of the year to 144,377 units, according to R.L. Polk & Co. But most of the heat is generated in the Golden State.

In fact, the hybrid revolution of the past couple of years seems more like a regional uprising.

California accounts for about 13 percent of the U.S. registrations but makes up more than a quarter of the market for hybrids.

More than 12 percent of America's hybrid sales are in the Los Angeles area.

"Hybrids do well in areas where there are strong social drivers," says Lonnie Miller, Polk's director of industry analysis. "And there is a lot of buzz about hybrids in California."

Miller cites three factors in California that help hybrids:

1. Road congestion heightens awareness of pollution.

2. New technology is typically adopted in areas of affluence. California has areas of significant wealth.

3. A more diverse population favors Asian imports. Toyota and Honda offer the most hybrid models.

Californians also have an incentive to buy them. The state Department of Motor Vehicles allotted 75,000 decals that permit hybrid owners to drive in freeway carpool lanes without passengers. Just over a year after the program was introduced, state officials still have a couple thousand left to give out.

The carpool lane is available for hybrid cars that get at least 45 mpg. That means only owners of the Toyota Prius and the Honda Civic Hybrid and Insight need apply.

Virginia, Washington and Massachusetts also are big on hybrids. Michigan is not. The state that is home to the Detroit 3 accounts for 4.2 percent of retail registrations in America, but just 1.7 percent of hybrid registrations.

California is often out front in matters of taste. And if it is truly the national bellwether, then hybrids have plenty of growth potential across the land. In states such as North Dakota, where 101 hybrids were registered from January through July, many buyers may not know a hybrid car from hybrid corn.

"The early adopters are in California," said Miller.

But here's the thing about California trends: Sometimes they're just fads. And a West Coast craze can evaporate before it gets across the Nevada state line.